Happen-chance
by muaaimoi
Summary: Ambiguous Marvel Universe AU. Tony is a recluse and Steve's trying to acclimate to the twenty first century. They have a chance meeting and Tony somehow talks his way into becoming Steve's roommate/pet.
1. Chapter 1

Tony was beginning to wonder if he should ban Rhodey from the lab. He didn't particularly want to. But his best friend of over a decade was starting to push it. And wow, they're getting old aren't they? When exactly had they gone over twenty again?

"What was the last time you spoke to someone other than me, Tony?" Rhodey was demanding.

He had his hands on his hips and he was doing that tapping thing with his foot that always made Tony feel like he was five years old again. It was basically the only mannerisms Rhodey shared with Howard Stark, but it was definitely the worst one for him to have. Or at least Tony thought so.

"I had a great conversation with a lovely pair of ladies not two days ago." Tony told him smugly. The sex had been great.

"How about someone whose name you actually know?" Rhodey snapped.

Tony thought back, mentally combing through the last year and coming up with an absolute blank. So it had been a while, so what?

"Sir did have quite an extensive discussion with some of his suppliers last week." JARVIS chimed in from the ceiling. Tony grinned brilliantly at the camera closest to him. He loved his AI. Someone had just earned himself an early update.

"On the phone?" Rhodey deadpanned. For some absurd reason, Rhodey didn't count that as social interaction.

"Via email.' JARVIS supplied. The AI saw nothing wrong with that, a view Rhodey would not share. He would have to talk to JARVIS about over sharing again.

"That doesn't count." Rhodey exclaimed. His tone falling into that 'you stupid, aggravating genius' one Rhodey had perfected by the time he was twelve years old. Not a full year after getting to know Tony."You're isolating yourself. You need actual human contact, Tony. Not nameless one night stands just because you're horny."

"Sex has plenty of contact." Tony argued.

Tony liked sex, he was good at it. So good in fact that his one night stands often wanted repeat performances. Not that Tony gave them, he never even gave the people his real name, if they even asked for one in the first place. It was completely unfeeling and anonymous, or at least that's what Tony believed one night stands were supposed to be.

And hey, Rhodey might totally have a point... Not that Rhodey needed to know that.

Tony ran a hand through his hair, exasperated. "Look, I have JARVIS it's not like I spend all my time in the lab alone."

" You can mute JARVIS." Rhodey argued back stubbornly."And I still say the worse thing you could do for yourself was move into your lab. Seriously, a bed with your clothes piled on it does not a home make. And now you don't even have a real place to go home to. You know you can't resist science, Tony. It's like letting an alcoholic move into a liquor store."

"It's not like I ever went home. It was cost effective. I basically live here anyway. And now I don't lose any time or money on transportation. It's efficient." It really was. Plus less time to run into people who might recognize him. Sure the last few years had made that chance slim to none, but Tony was paranoid. Slim was too high a chance.

"It's sad, Tony! That's what it is! You just turned twenty one and I'm the only person whose name you know you've spoken to in the last year!"

It was probably two or three years, but there really was no reason to give Rhodey more ammo.

"And I spent most of that year at ROTC!" He already had plenty.

"Sir if I may..." Jarvis cut in. And Tony finally looked at what he was actually doing with his hands. Shit. That was not good. That was about to blow in two minutes actually.

"Emergency lockdown!" Tony shouted. Grabbing Rhodey's arm and booking it out the door before the reinforced steel doors clamped shut. He really needed to pay more attention to what he was doing.

The doors didn't exactly muffle the explosion.

"What the hell was that?" Rhodey asked faintly, paling. Always an impressive feat with someone of his complexion.

"You interrupted me during a delicate phase." Tony muttered, rubbing at his new goatee. There went his next two weeks. He hated replacing materials. It was expensive. Plus there went his place to live. The lab would be uninhabitable for a while. That sucked too.

"Aw man Tony." Rhodey's eyes softened as they looked at him. Tony hated that look. He hated Rhodey's sympathy.

"I guess I'll go back to the mansion for a while." The place was about the only thing left in Tony's name from what had once been a great Stark fortune. Sadly Gregory had managed to ruin that before Tony had finished college. He'd been seventeen. Now he was an MIT dropout.

"You hate the mansion." Rhodey told him unnecessarily.

"Well it's that or a Hotel, and I can't really afford one right now. I subsidies those new water filters for Africa way more than I should have, so I have to penny pinch for a good two months now, since I have to get my lab fixed." He glared at Rhodey for the last bit, making it clear who he blamed for the blunder.

Rhodey had clearly known him for too long. He was having none of it.

"Oh you are not blaming that on me. Anyone else would have the sense to stop working on a 'delicate' procedure when they're having an argument. You were the one who kept working on it."

So Tony was an arrogant genius, sue him, why don't you? He was proud of his brain, it was basically all he had. Well that and good looks, but the public would only agree that his genius was a boon for humanity.

"And why can't you just stay with me?" Rhodey asked, lifting an eyebrow.

And no, just no. The only thing Tony hated more than Rhodey's sympathy, was his charity. Maybe his sense of pride was a little overblown, but Tony hated relying on anyone for anything. Rhodey especially. His parent's had actually tried to take Tony in while Gregory was standing trial for the whole Stark Industries snafu. He'd barely managed to escape their kindness by the skin of his teeth and get emancipated.

"My moms been asking about you. You know how she worries Tony, and I always feel awful about lying to her and saying that you're fine. You're a lot of things, but fine is not one of them." Rhodey continued on, oblivious to Tony's panic, or just ignoring it. It was hard to tell.

"Sorry Cupcake. It's just not my scene." He just knew that the second that Rhodey's mom got him in her house he wouldn't be allowed out again. At least not until the woman felt he'd conquered his laundry load of issues. That meant Tony might not ever see the light of day again... Logic demanded he make a break for it.

"Maybe it'll do you some good to talk to someone else. Tony? Where are you going? Damn it! Tony!"

xXx

"I will be frank with you Steve." The SHIELD psychologist was telling him seriously. "You're isolating yourself. The only social interaction you have is with other agents. You need to branch out into the world. It's been six months now, and you've adapted better than we could have hoped."

Steve certainly didn't feel like it. He liked doing SHIELD ops for the feeling of competence it brought him. Steve knew how to lead, and how to fight. He didn't know what to do with himself when he made it to his Brooklyn apartment after.

"You need a life outside of SHIELD." The psychologist continued."You could try getting a roommate, or a pet. Dog owners are known to fall into friendship with other dog owners easily."

Steve didn't have the first idea where he would even get one. Let alone what he would do with a dog after. The twenty first century was daunting enough without an animal to take care of. But he had to listen to the psychologist. It was part of the conditions set on being an agent for SHIELD.

Which was how he found himself on the park bench in front of a dog park. He looked around. The animals looked happy enough, wagging their tails and playing with their owners. Some were being walked, others playing fetch, some were just chasing each other around.

Steve wondered what it would feel like to have a dog. Would he look like the other dog owners? Some looked exasperated, but most looked happy.

"I know that face." A voice called out." You're thinking about getting a dog aren't you?"

It was a red haired woman, she had the smallest dog Steve had ever seen tucked under one arm. She smiled at him.

"My names Sandy, this lazy ball of fluff is Bell." She offered her hand.

"Steve Rogers ma'am." Steve said, manners kicking in."It's nice to meet you."

"So what kind are you going for, full grown dog or a puppy?" Sandy asked, jumping right in.

"I'm afraid I don't know much about dogs." Steve admitted with a sheepish smile.

"That's fine." Sandy said, waving dismissively." At least you realize it. Once you get a dog you'll have to learn pretty quickly."

Her pocket then made a beeping noise."Shoot. I'm almost late for an appointment. Here's my card, I'm a dog trainer. Any questions you have, feel free to call, aright?"

Steve nodded, smiling gratefully."Thank you."

"No problem." Sandy said." Just remember, what they need most is your time and attention. Especially puppies."

And with that she jogged away. Dog still tucked carefully under her arm.

The SHIELD psychologist had clearly known what she was talking about. Steve hadn't even gotten a dog yet, and he was already making friends. He leaned back on the bench eyes focused on the different breeds around him. Surely there was one that would make a good pet for him...

That's when a stranger collapses next to him on the bench.

**x**

**So this is what happens when I read an Avengers fic and then remember that I read tramps like us... This story will be a very loose mix of the two. I seem to write really slowly in this fandom...I don't know why, but thems the breaks, you've been warned. I have most of the beginning sorted, but the rest is this nebulous grey area until the end...If you have any ideas for this verse I'd love to hear them, it might spark something and help me write more or something...**


	2. Chapter 2

Rhodey didn't know the neighborhood the way Tony did. That's about the only thing that allowed him to escape his military trained best friend. That and a head start. Tony's pretty sure he'd never run so fast in his life. He also hasn't run so much period. He eventually makes it to a dog park he remembers nearby.

It's the safest place for him. Rhodey wouldn't believe Tony would willingly subject himself to nature like that, let alone animals of all things. He pulls his phone out of his pocket and opens his gps app. His phone is completely tricked out, unlike the normal, boring gps apps that just tell you where you are, Tony has set his to detect Rhodey's phone, which means he has Rhodey's location. And Rhodey is safely six blocks away and heading even further out.

He slumps on the first bench he comes across with sheer relief. He's still panting though, he's done way too much exercise today.

"Excuse me." A voice says startling him. "Would you like some water."

Tony's halfway through the water bottle before he actually looks at the guy who offered it. He promptly chokes.

The guy was like the embodiment of his pre-pubescent fantasies of Captain America. An exact replica of every black and white photo Tony had ever seen come to life. About the only thing beside science Tony and Howard Stark had ever agreed on was the awesomeness of Captain America. Tony wondered if he was suffering from some adrenaline induced hallucination. If he was, he might have to exercise more often. As surreptitiously as possible, Tony pinched himself.

Ow. But ooh! The blonde bombshell was still there.

"Steve Rogers." The guy said, offering his hand. Even Captain Americas real name was the same. Tony, who was not about to pass up a chance for physical contact, quickly grasped it with his own, letting his hand linger until just enough that it became obvious he was trying to prolong the contact.

"Tony." He surprised himself by revealing. The name Stark hadn't crossed his lips in years, and it wouldn't anytime soon. But surely it was okay to give his first name away, right? This was New York. The name Tony was hardly exotic.

"Nice to meet you Tony." Steve said, smiling so prettily that Tony wanted to freeze time, just to preserve the moment. Surely he could make a machine for that...And wow Steve was starting to look uncomfortable. He probably should stop staring. Or at least start a conversation to justify his ogling.

"So where's the dog?" Tony ventured. This was why he loved his brain. It often retained things Tony wasn't even consciously aware of. Steve proceeded to look confused."Well this is a dog park. You look like a dog person so...?"

Steve blushed."I'm only thinking about getting one. Do you own a dog?"

"Oh god no." Tony made a face."Picking up poop is just not for me."

Dummy, Butterfingers and U were more than messy enough. And all they ever leaked was oil. Tony had long since resigned himself to being covered in that for the rest of his life.

"So what are you doing here then? If you're not a dog person?" Steve asked. He was being unfairly attractive. Tony didn't even think about lying to him.

"Running from my well meaning best friend." He admitted."I'm homeless since about ten minutes ago and he wants to take me home."

Steve blinked."Did you get kicked out?"

"There was an unfortunate explosion." Tony said with a sheepish smile."I live alone." Unless one counted JARVIS of course. Sadly most people wouldn't.

"An explosion?" Steve asked.

"Never deal with delicate circuitry while you're trying to have an argument." Tony advised sagely."Now Rhodey wants to take me home with him."

Steve laughed. The man really was almost painfully hot. Tony usually hated getting laughed at. But he just couldn't bring himself to mind while Steve did it."I'll remember that. So how long until you can go home again?"

Tony hummed, calculating material costs, other expenses, and the work he was willing to do himself."End of the month probably."

Steve smiled rather distractingly at him."Would living with your friend for two weeks really be so bad?"

"Horrible." Tony affirmed."Sure he just wants to give me a place to stay for now. But once he has me in his house he'd never let me leave. Something about human companionship and not being socialized, I wasn't really listening."

"Sounds like my psychologist." Steve confessed."I've become isolated outside of work. She said I need to get a roommate or a pet."

"A roommate or a pet, huh? Why not both? Hey, you're in luck, my friend says dealing with me is like herding cats, and I need a new place to live for a while. How about it? I could totally be your live in pet. I'll lick you hello at the door and everything." Tony offered eagerly.

That's what pets did, right? Tony was pretty hazy on the details, having not actually dealt with domesticated animals in his life. His woofbot was the closest he got. And that had ended pretty badly when his dad got drunk that one night.

Steve laughed, once again looking enticingly like some greek god as he did so. That man just seemed to get better and better.

"And I'm supposed to look forward to that?" Steve asked, almost playfully.

Steve did not seem to think he was serious. Tony was perfectly serious.

"Very. I totally want to lick you. Everyday. And twice on Sunday. I'm really good at it. A girl tried to give me a standing ovation once, but her legs couldn't hold her up." Tony rambled. Yep, Rhodey definitely had a point about the isolation, Tony knew saying that wasn't exactly socially acceptable, but he really couldn't help himself. He had eyes. Who wouldn't want what may have been Captain Americas clone? Tony didn't care if he was some genetically engineered government experiment. He wanted to hit that like the fist of an angry god.

And he totally had to start hacking government agencies again. Sure it was illegal as hell, but if cloning technology had reached Steve Roger levels of perfection, then Tony needed to know. That shit was dangerous. The last thing he needed was for someone to think it was a good idea to clone Howard Stark.

Steve laughed again, he still seemed to think Tony was kidding."Well how about we take my bike down to Brooklyn and I show you around the place? You can tell me how you feel about being my human pet then?"

Tony really wished that invitation had not been legitimate. He could only hope that he'd read the vibe Steve was giving off wrong and he had in fact been invited to Steve's apartment to have kinky sex. But Tony's long sordid history with one night stands said otherwise. They weren't on the same page at all.

Tony wondered how more blatant he could be about his desire to do filthy things with, and to, Steve. Licking was completely innocent compared to what Tony actually wanted to do to the guy.

Maybe living with him would help get Tony's point across? Or better yet, actually get him laid.

xXx

Tony reminded him almost painfully of Howard. something around the eyes and the bone structure. They could have been brothers. It didn't help that Tony was an inventor, as he'd volunteered when Steve asked what he did at home that would cause an explosion.

He'd mumbled something about revolutionizing the pleasures of life and coffee. Steve hadn't asked for the specifics. The constant stream of words was a little overwhelming at first, but they had settled into something of a rhythm with each other. Conversation flowed surprisingly easily between them. Whatever quality Tony had that had made Steve trust in him so easily had held strong throughout their time on the bench.

Something about him made Steve smile. After the initial impression of a smooth talking flirt, he'd actually begun listening to what was coming out of Tony's mouth. The innuendo and flirting was a bit overdone, but Tony had clearly meant it in jest. Steve had enough experience reading when someone really wanted him from his USO days. Some of those show girls had been very forward dames.

Aside from the way his eyes roved Steve's skin in open admiration, Tony's body language had been more open and friendly than anything else.

Steve had never felt so comfortable around anyone else from the future. Not his fellow SHIELD agents, not his psychologist or any of the doctors from the infirmary. Something about Tony just put him at ease. Steve actually liked the thought of living with him. Now presented with someone viable for the position, Steve realized he missed having a roommate. He'd lived with Bucky for a long time before he'd become a soldier. Steve missed their old room in Brooklyn.

The future did take some getting used to. But at least there were bright spots. In his time flirts like Tony could never be so friendly with the opposite sex. Steve had thought it might make him uncomfortable. But flirting seemed to come so easily and naturally to Tony that it didn't seem strange in the least.

Not even after the motorcycle ride, when Tony had clung to him and insisted that they needed to ride for a bit longer, as he hadn't finished feeling on Steve muscles, did Steve feel odd. He'd simply disentangled the brunettes arms from his waist and told him sternly that they had to go now, or else Tony wouldn't be allowed in the apartment at all. Indulging him would set a very bad precedent on the roommate front.

Tony had pouted at him. Literally stuck out his lower lip, drew his eyebrows up, widened his eyes and whined. Steve had been startled into laughter, and surprised at himself for wanting to get back on the bike and let Tony feel him up so as to wipe the sad look off his face.

Steve could see how Tony was so easily outrageous. Clearly being childish and flirty had worked well for him so far. Steve couldn't remember a time after he'd been unfrozen when he had laughed so much.

But Steve wasn't about to give in to him. So up to his apartment they went. And promptly stopped at the door. Tony's phone was going insane, beeping shrilly.

Tony fetched it from his pockets and began to tap frantically on it, eyebrows arching in surprise."Please tell me you bugged your apartment to high hell on purpose."

Steve blinked." What?"

"Cameras." Tony said, presenting his phone's screen to steve."They're broadcasting locally. It's easy to pick up the signal."

The phones screen flashed across different scenes. All presenting the rooms in his apartment at different angles. Rage flared in him, sudden and hot. SHIELD. Of course they were spying on him. They were a spy organization, and he was their new shiny weapon.

"So going from the look on your face the cameras weren't your idea?" Tony ventured.

Steve forced the scowl he hadn't even noticed making away. He sighed, he should have known better than to expect them to respect his privacy. He felt so stupid. Stupid and outraged.

"I don't suppose you could do anything about them?" He asked Tony helplessly. Tony had been the one to find them, after all. He could hope.

"Loads." Tony said cheerfully." I could short circuit them. Loop the current content. Or if you really feel like messing with whoever's spying on you, I can hijack the camera signal and make them watch squirrel porn."

"Squirrel porn?" Steve repeated dumbly. There were things about the twenty first century that he was better off not knowing about. He was sure squirrel porn was one of them."No, you know what? Please don't tell me."

"So what do you want me to do?" Tony asked, bouncing on his toes. He seemed to be enjoying himself at least.

Steve thought for a moment."Is there a way to loop them without them figuring it out eventually?"

Tony hummed,"It'll take me a little longer, but I can totally hack them, if they have any recordings I can stream those instead. It'll look like you're home alone. Same as any other day."

Steve gaped at him, a little awestruck."That's amazing! And you can do all that of a cell phone?"

"Genius here." Tony preened." Give me ten minutes."

Steve really hoped Tony decided to move in with him after all. He was already proving invaluable as a roommate. Steve watched in interest and Tony tapped on his phone screen, fingers flying. The new age technology was amazing. Truly something Steve was still trying to grasp the bare minimum of.

True to his word, fifteen minutes later, Tony looked up from his phone with a smile.

"Done!"

Steve smiled back."Thank you."

And opened the door.

Some optimist at shield had furnished a second room, presumably for guests. As Tony was the first person besides Nick Fury and Steve himself to enter the apartment, the guest room had been doing nothing but gathering dust.

Steve felt himself flushing at the thin layer of dust coating the place. He hadn't cleaned up before inviting Tony inside. And while rationally, Steve knew that he'd had no way of knowing that Tony would invite himself to live with him that day, or even that it had gotten that dusty in his absence, he still felt embarrassed about the state of the place.

"I'll clean it before you move in." Steve promised."If you do decide to move in, that is." He wouldn't have blamed Tony for changing his mind.

"Hey, there's a bed, four walls, and you live here. I'm sold." Tony said with a brilliant smile. Steve thought he could have been a model, or an actor. Tony was easily movie star good-looking. He had a great smile."So how long have you lived here anyway?"

"Half a year." Steve replied." Why?"

"You do know you don't have a TV right?"

**x**

**So what I meant by Ambiguous Marvel Universe AU was that I was pulling from various comic and movies verses...Although I guess I should explain. Movie wise Steve's life is pretty similar to what happened in Captain America. But in this Tony has a brother named Gregory(like he does in one of the comic verses. Except that they aren't twins here, Gregory is older and IM movie Tony's age. Tony was a surprise from Howard's second wife, Maria. Which is why Tony is closer to Steve's age.), although more on the SI/Gregory snafu as the story develops. Pepper and Coulson( As well as the other avengers) do make an appearance but it's pretty far into the story. **


	3. Chapter 3

SHIELD tech had to be some of the most advanced in the world. It certainly had the most impressive firewalls Tony had ever seen. He probably would have had a lot more trouble hacking their system if he wasn't, well, Tony. The genius label had not been wasted on him. Which was why he'd started taking mental notes on how to improve his own security. He would hate it if anyone ever actually managed to get into JARVIS.

The AI was usually his hacking wing-man, so to speak. The first order of business before he moved in with Steve was to get the AI back online. He didn't want to delve further into their system without his back up, and he really wanted to know what Steve's back story was. Plus, he needed JARVIS, he needed JARVIS bad. Tony had no idea how to go about being a pet. Hell, Tony had no idea how to be a person most of the time, if he was honest. Which was why playing the part of a pet would probably be his best bet if he wanted Steve to actually like him, which he did. He just didn't know how to do anything other than flirt.

Something about his wiring, whatever quirk of genetics resulted in his genius also left him bereft in regards to other people. He honestly wondered how Rhodey could still stand him after all these years. It wasn't even like Tony still had a true fortune going for him either. He wasn't dirt poor. Tony was too smart for that, he'd played the stock market with what little his mother's side of the family had left him, since the entirety of the Stark fortune was gone, the only thing left under his name was the mansion. Once he had enough to create a few puppet companies he'd managed to get some of his inventions on the market, under pseudonyms of course, but at least he'd managed. It was nothing compared to his previous wealth though. He couldn't amass the kind of money he wanted without attracting attention. And as Tony Stark, all attention was bad attention.

Those first few years had been focused on doing as much good as he could. Desperate to show the world that the name Stark was not synonymous with trash. Tony had been ready to unveil all the work he had done, prepared to reclaim his legacy. What he'd been unprepared for was the utter failure of the feelers he'd put out. No one was even open to the idea of talking to him. Even the briefest mention of the name Stark in an email was enough to sour a business relationship. At the end of the day, for all that Tony had been a genius, he'd been an inventor first, and far too naive about the business world. He hadn't been enough of a businessman to see the true extent of what his brother had done. The years since had cured him of both afflictions. He stuck to his inventions, his puppet companies, did what good he could in the world, and avoided socializing.

Except that now, having Steve Rogers as a roommate, he couldn't. Not that he even wanted to, because hello, Steve's… Everything. He was just...clueless. Rhodey had been shoved in a room with him when they were both twelve because his mother had been one of his fathers lawyers and she'd actually brought him to take your kid to work day. Tony had just gotten tired of his many private tutors yammering on and on, so he'd snuck into his fathers company. No one had been surprised. Tony had done it often.

He couldn't quite remember how they'd ended up friends. He has vague memories of fixing Rhodey's watch, but that surely not enough for him to put up with so much of Tony's crap. JARVIS barely tolerated Tony's crap, and Tony had built him.

Which was why he needed JARVIS, to figure out what people actually got out of having pets, and make sure that he'd provide it to Steve. It couldn't actually be that difficult. Animals did it all the time. Tony was a genius, he was sure he could figure it out.

Nodding to himself Tony went to fetch his tool kit. He needed to get Jarvis back online stat.

xXx

Steve had kept his word, he'd cleaned the guestroom within an inch of it's life once Tony had left. Aired it out, and settled in to plan a welcome dinner for Tony for when they were done moving him in. He'd been surprised by how excited he was to be living with the inventor. As he'd just completed a gruelling op, SHIELD policy stated that he had to take at least five days off. Steve would usually fill his idle time with his workouts, and his sketchbook. But now he could take the time to really get to know Tony. He really looked forward to having a friend again. It was even outside of SHIELD, which made it even better, in Steve's opinion.

It was late afternoon by the time Tony arrived, rapping impatiently at his door. Steve opened the door, coming to face with Tony, carrying two duffels and several boxes overflowing with wires and machine parts. He wondered how Tony had gotten everything up the stairs.

"Hello?" He ventured, attempting to figure out how exactly the other man was balancing everything.

"Hi, wow you look hot like burning in that tank top."Tony beamed," Also, where's your kitchen? I need coffee."

Steve felt his ears warm as he stepped back from the doorway and motioned wordlessly behind him, past the living room. He watched as the inventor dashed over, impressed when Tony hadn't actually dropped anything. Instead he set up shop at the counter, pulling tools and pieces of machinery out periodically. Fascinated, Steve closed the door and sat down to watch. He'd always enjoyed watching Howard work when presented with the opportunity. He was struck by the similarity between the inventors yet again, watching Tony's profile as his focus narrowed down to the machine between his hands.

It was oddly entrancing.

A few minutes later he found himself blinking at the most complicated piece of technology he had ever seen in his life. He'd never watched something come together so quickly. He could vaguely recognize the shape of it now. SHIELD agents were very big on caffeine.

"And that's supposed to be what? A coffee machine?"

"Not a coffee machine, THE coffee machine, Steve." Tony informed him seriously, bouncing on his toes as his fingers deftly worked some wiring."I made it."

Steve blinked some more, before smiling, amused."I can see that. What are you doing to it now?"

"Adjusting the laser settings." Tony answered absently, his attention clearly still on the machine before him.

"It has a laser?" Steve couldn't help but ask, incredulous. SHIELD weaponry had lasers. He didn't know what such a thing was doing in a kitchen appliance.

"Coffee is serious business Steve. Lasers are way better at heating water then heat coils." Tony said, actually looking up to meet Steve's eyes as he said it. He had the feeling Tony was perfectly serious. Then again, he had seen a few SHIELD agents before their first cup on a few emergencies that had cropped up the last few months. He was sure they would agree.

"Well okay then." Steve said, deciding discretion was the better part of valor.

Tony hummed absently, attention back to the task at hand. Something told him living with the inventor would indeed be very interesting .

**x**

**Shorter than usual, but hey, update.**


End file.
